Crossing The Continent In Style Means Riding The Deluxe Canadian

April 10, 1988|By Donald L. Pevsner, Knight-Ridder Newspapers.

There is nothing like crossing the continent on a deluxe, streamlined train. But in 1988, there is only one true example of the best of this breed left. To ride it, you must look north-to Canada and to the Canadian.

In 1954, Canadian Pacific Railways invested $40 million (equivalent to $500 million today) in its flagship transcontinental train. On April 24, 1955, the Canadian made its first run, starting daily service from Montreal and Toronto to Vancouver.

The equipment was, and still is, deluxe, from the coaches to the diner;

from the comfortable sleeping cars to the gorgeous observation dome car, with its unique elevated dome providing viewing to the front and rear of the entire train, as well as side views. (There are two dome cars, including the observation car, on the train, so 48 passengers can sit upstairs at any one time.)

The service is excellent and the food (at about $8 for dinner and about $4.50 for lunch) is prepared by hand, in real ovens, not in a microwave. But the real reason for riding the Canadian is the scenery: 2,887 miles from Montreal to Vancouver (2,710 miles from Toronto), including the rugged shoreline of Lake Superior; miles of wild pine woods and lakes; the great prairie lands of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and eastern Alberta; and the majestic Canadian Rockies, all crossed in luxurious comfort in about 76 hours.

If you travel westbound in summer, you will traverse the most scenic part of Lake Superior shoreline in daylight, but will see darkness fall while only partway through the Rockies. If you travel eastbound, you will see the best of the Rockies, but darkness will hide the wild Lake Superior shore.

A happy solution is available, for the first time in many years, from early June to early October. You should ride westbound on the Canadian, from Montreal or Toronto to Banff or Lake Louise, where you may spend a few days or a week exploring the best of the Canadian Rockies by rental car, or on a guided bus tour.

Then on Thursdays, a special all-daylight, coach-only train (how negligent of VIA Rail to omit a dome car) leaves Banff at 9:30 a.m., and spends two days traversing the Rockies, with a midpoint overnight at Kamloops, B.C. You arrive in Vancouver at 5:15 p.m. Friday, having missed none of the scenery that you might otherwise miss on the Canadian west of Revelstoke, British Columbia, and the only extra cost is a night`s motel.

Rail fares on VIA Rail Canada are amazingly low, particularly in view of what you receive. A one-way rail ticket costs just $207.83 (all prices are in U.S. dollars) from Montreal to Vancouver; $196.53 from Toronto. To this base fare, you must add the cost of sleeping-car accommodations, which are highly recommended. There are several types, ranging from semi-private berths screened at night by draperies, to drawing rooms for up to three people. The main accommodations are roomettes for one (with built-in sink and toilet) and bedrooms for two.

One way to hook up with the Canadian is to fly from Chicago to Vancouver, take the train across Canada to Toronto or Montreal and fly home from either city. (Sample air fares-with no restrictions-via Air Canada: Chicago-Vancouver and Toronto-Chicago is $405; returning from Montreal, the price is $454. Fares are based on the purchase of two one-way tickets.)

I recommend a unique milepost-by-milepost guidebook to the entire route of the Canadian. Bill Coo, a 34-year veteran of Canadian railroads, has written the marvelous ``Scenic Rail Guide to Western Canada.`` It costs less than $10 and is available from Greey de Pencier Books, 59 Front St. E., Toronto, Ontario M5E 1B3, Canada. I found it available as well at the Vancouver railroad station and on board.

For full information on Canadian trains and tours, call VIA Rail Canada at 800-561-3949 (from Maine south to Florida, and as far west as Kentucky and Tennessee); 800-665-0200 (from roughly Kansas and Louisiana west);

800-387-1144 (for an area bounded by Ohio, Minnesota, Arkansas and Missouri); 800-361-3766 (New York and Connecticut). Or call 800-555-1212.

For Amtrak train information, call: 800-USA-RAIL (872-7245).

Two important final notes: In summer, the train sells out way in advance. But in the off-season, if you have the stamina, you will save a hefty 40 percent on the price if you ride both ways on the train, using VIA Rail`s Continental Saver excursion fares.